Ronaldo signals the end of his Portugal career: “I wish the team luck, and the truth will come out when the time is right”
Story By Staff Reporter
Cristiano Ronaldo has ended his silence after walking out of the Portugal camp ahead of the UEFA Nations League match against Denmark. He said he will explain his reasons in due course, and the tone of his message sounded like a goodbye.
The Portugal captain posted a statement on his official social media accounts after leaving the team’s base in Denmark, with his private plane reportedly already preparing to fly him back to Madrid. “After the national team coach’s press conference, and after speaking with the president of the Portuguese Football Federation, I decided to leave the national team camp,” he wrote.
He went on: “When the time is right, I will tell the Portuguese people the truth about why I am leaving the national team I have always given everything for.” He closed by saying: “Now is the moment to wish Portugal and all my team-mates, without exception, the best of luck.”
What led to the crisis?
Ronaldo skipped Portugal’s training session for the third day in a row, deepening the tension in the camp. It happened just minutes after coach Jorge Jesus had insisted the captain would join the session in Copenhagen.
The Portuguese newspaper A Bola reported that Ronaldo left Parken Stadium on Wednesday in a Portuguese Football Federation car, just as his team-mates, apart from Francisco Conceicao, were arriving on the pitch.
He left shortly after the pre-match press conference, where Jesus said the 41-year-old forward would train but suggested he might not start the match.
Jesus said: “Yesterday, he didn’t refuse to train. Francisco Conceicao sat out because of an injury, and Joao Felix because we were managing his fatigue, while Cristiano worked in the gym. Today he will train. It’s the fourth day, so he will train.”
The coach also made clear that selection is his decision alone: “I can promise whatever I like. I’m the coach. I told the player he wouldn’t start and would be on the bench. If I need him for 30 minutes, he’ll play; if I don’t, he won’t. No player will change my mind, neither him nor anyone else in football, not even a president. That will never happen.”
Reporting based on original coverage by Goal.
